io9
Welcome to New Comics We Crave, a weekly column from io9's comics czar Graeme McMillan, a rather shy young Scottish lad whom you may know from Newsarama or Fanboy Rampage. Ordinarily published on Tuesdays (in time for you to prepare for Wednesday, the Sacred Day of New Comics), this week it's coming at you late since new comics arrive on Friday for the holidays.
If the first week of the year means things like "New beginnings" and "Turning over a new leaf" for, well, almost everyone in the world who follows the Judeo-Christian calendar, then it's refreshing to see that comic publishers continue to buck that particular trend by releasing very little of interest while we're all doing more important things like recovering from parties. Nonetheless, if you find yourself wandering into a comic book store in a still-drunken haze this Friday with some cash in your pocket, I thought it may be a nice thing to suggest some ways for you to spend it.
The easiest - and maybe less productive - way to get rid of your money would be to pick up the rush-released second printing to DC Comics' Heroes hardcover, collecting all the webcomic tie-ins to the NBC show for those who missed the first printing, just in time to miss that Christmas rush. Be warned, though - It'd be fair to say that the highpoint of the book is the design, with the actual content making you long for the start of the new season of the TV show. If you're obsessed with giving your dollars to the Time-Warner corporation, then a much better bet would be the first issue of the uncomfortably-named Teen Titans Year One, which doesn't actually show the first year of the adolescent crimefighters' lives but instead the first year of their adventures together. Amy Wolfram, who wrote for the ginchy Titans cartoon that used to be on Cartoon Network, handles the script while Canadian wunderkind Karl Kerschl provides some beautifully cartoony artwork. If you're undecided, you can see a preview here.
While Marvel Comics' most interesting release this week really has nothing to do with scifi and therefore probably shouldn't be mentioned here (but it's Essential Power Man and Iron Fist Volume 1, collecting the first twenty-or-so issues of mash-up between Marvel's 1970s blaxploitation and kung-fusploitation superheroes), the publisher does see fit to launch the first of its summer movie tie-in titles this week with the first issue of Ultimate Human by Transmetropolitan writer and honorary Suicide Girl Warren Ellis and former Conan artist Cary Nord. You can't tell from the title, but Ultimate Human is actually four issues of "Who's harder? Iron Man, soon to be a major motion picture starring Robert Downey Jr., or the Hulk, also soon to be a major motion picture starring Ed Norton?" so potential fan fun to be had there, as well as potential drinking game fun from awkward mentions of new technology.
In terms of more indie books, it's all about old faithfuls, with the picks being Joss Whedon's Buffy book reaching its tenth issue and celebrates by bringing in Daniel Craig (No, really) and AiT/PlanetLar's The Black Diamond reaching the end of its cross-country road trip/chase movie/colorful exploration of the comic form. Otherwise, it's a pretty slow week; Image Comics are relaunching a book called Shark-Man, and there's something about the sheer "Sci-Fi Channel TV Movie" quality of that title that tells you all you need to know about why you might want to avoid comic stores until next week and keep drinking, instead.
Comments
Sorry to burst your bubble, but comic books hold no fascination for me anymore. Marvel is killing itself in the rush to capitalize on turning its heroes into parodies of themselves on movie screens, and D.C. has done some admirable work of late but is getting stale. They had a bold move when they killed of Superman, but followed it up by caving in and resurrecting him a short time later. And as to the indie comics, well, there's just nothing there to capture my fancy anymore. Perhaps I have become the curmudgeon I had never hoped to be.
I'm looking forward to the Teen Titans Year One and Buffy: Season Eight has been made of every kind of awesome available and some I think Joss invented just for the comic book.
Marvel? Meh, and I prefer Warren's drunken "Bad Signal" emails which have become sadly infrequent and far less drunken than in their heyday.
@NefariousNewt: I'm not entirely sure how that's supposed to burst his bubble, since there are plenty of us who are interested in comics. Try reading Invincible before you give up on anything catching your fancy.
Buffy: Season Eight has been fantastic so far, much more entertaining than seasons 6 & 7 of the actual show.
Man, I'm still amazed at how they ruined Spider-Man recently.
I know it's hard not to lump us in together, but the calendar is one thing that is decidedly not "Judeo-Christian". :) The Jewish calendar follows the lunar cycle and the New Year fell on September 12th this past year.
Great column, Graeme! Looking forward to checking in with you each week for your funny book recommendations.
@butchie: Word up my He-Bro (or Bro-ess)
Despite some people losing interest in comics this past year has really grabbed me. Planet Hulk/WW Hulk were pretty well put together mega stories, although they were almost TOO big. Along with the Civil War I can't figure out any sane way Marvel can return the status quo to the universe. I suppose EVERYONE could make a deal with the devil...
DC has some great stuff going on. Grant Morrison's work on Batman is excellent, and I am looking forward to Final Crisis (I just need to wait for the so far 'meh' Countdown to wrap up). Countdown is suffering from the far more interesting side books associated with it, like Arena, Sinestro Wars, Challengers and (my favorite) Countdown To Adventure (yay Animal Man).
New Warren Ellis stuff exists in a limbo state in my brain. I mean, I really enjoy just about everything he has written, but at the same time I feel like I have already READ everything he has written. I look forward to seeing his take on existing characters, as I have grown tired of his original characters, who all seem to be the same guy. His 'Angry Old Bastard" character who TELLS IT LIKE IT IS is just about as clichéd as Gaiman's skinny goth boys and sassy but troubled teen aged girls.
I think Marvels editorial decisions are hurting the medium more then poor writing/art ever could. I think DCs return to weekly stuff with 52 was a good money making and fun move, but they really should not have gotten greedy and followed it up with Countdown (HINT: Nobody really gives 2 shits about Jimmy Olsen "Oh My Gosh!"ing his way around the DCU with stolen superpowers, at least not with the people who are writing it right now) which clearly suffers from "bridging one story into another" syndrome. The real problem with countdown is you can sit down and read the first 20 or so and there is little indication that any in story time is really passing, whereas with 52 all kinds of stuff happened between pages.
Anyway, here is hoping that 2008 brings about some MAJOR EVENTS THAT WILL CHANGE THE [DC/Marvel] UNIVERSE FOREVER!
@butchie: Word up my He-Bro (or Bro-ess)
Despite some people losing interest in comics this past year has really grabbed me. Planet Hulk/WW Hulk were pretty well put together mega stories, although they were almost TOO big. Along with the Civil War I can't figure out any sane way Marvel can return the status quo to the universe. I suppose EVERYONE could make a deal with the devil...
DC has some great stuff going on. Grant Morrison's work on Batman is excellent, and I am looking forward to Final Crisis (I just need to wait for the so far 'meh' Countdown to wrap up). Countdown is suffering from the far more interesting side books associated with it, like Arena, Sinestro Wars, Challengers and (my favorite) Countdown To Adventure (yay Animal Man).
New Warren Ellis stuff exists in a limbo state in my brain. I mean, I really enjoy just about everything he has written, but at the same time I feel like I have already READ everything he has written. I look forward to seeing his take on existing characters, as I have grown tired of his original characters, who all seem to be the same guy. His 'Angry Old Bastard" character who TELLS IT LIKE IT IS is just about as clichéd as Gaiman's skinny goth boys and sassy but troubled teenaged girls.
I think Marvels editorial decisions are hurting the medium more then poor writing/art ever could. I think DCs return to weekly stuff with 52 was a good money making and fun move, but they really should not have gotten greedy and followed it up with Countdown (HINT: Nobody really gives 2 shits about Jimmy Olsen "Oh My Gosh!"ing his way around the DCU with stolen superpowers, at least not with the people who are writing it right now) which clearly suffers from "bridging one story into another" syndrome. The real problem with countdown is you can sit down and read the first 20 or so and there is little indication that any in story time is really passing, whereas with 52 all kinds of stuff happened between pages.
Anyway, here is hoping that 2008 brings about some MAJOR EVENTS THAT WILL CHANGE THE [DC/Marvel] UNIVERSE FOREVER!
Ah dammit...
@ElijahDProphet: How are Gaimain's "skinny goth boys and sassy but troubled teenaged girls" clichés when he's only done them in the one series? Or not really... are you calling Door sassy but troubled? Death? Delirium? ...Teenaged?
Very confused on this point.
Death and Delirium aren't ACTUALLY teen aged, sure, but they are both presented as such, the girl from Mirror Mask (Labyrinth 2?) fits the bill as well. In all fairness it was a cheap shot at his best known and recognized work, not an undeserved one in my opinion, but a cheap shot none the less. I liked what he did with Lucifer in Sandman though (though I really liked the Lucifer series more), and a lot of his non comics non Mirror Mask stuff can be good.
I meant to say they are presented as such at times, work distracts me from talking about comics, stupid work.
Warren Ellis' writing always reminds me of what one literary critic said to Jack Kerouac upon seeing the "On the Road" scroll.
"That's not writing Mr. Kerouac, it's typing."
His characters are either grizzled cliches (get me cigarettes...and booze!) or techno-babbling cardboard cut-outs. Doktor Sleepless was like reading a wikipedia entry with that "This Article Needs Clean-Up" tag at the top. Lazarus Churchyard, Desolation Jones, Grinder, Strange Kisses/killings, it's self-parody at a certain point.
His superhero work is interesting, but knowing how much he hates the genre makes it feel like watching a prostitute have really entertaining sex. It might arouse you, but you feel like soaking your genitals in lye.
He has clever ideas, usually copped from his wide-spectrum readings of blogs and journals, but his stories generally lack in human characters. The only real exception to this I've seen is Fell, which I think benefits from having one of the most brilliantly expressive artists in the medium working on it.
Add to that his rather obnoxious online presence. The whole "I am a creepy old man and yet from my garden Shed I proclaim all that is good and cool". is just affectation.
I think alot of his work gets sold on it's "edginess" (cursing, drinking, drugs) and not on it's merit. He's a clever writer, not a good one.
And, in true form, he hates this place even before it's started.
[www.warrenellis.com]
Oooh, edgy.
@ElijahDProphet: Yes, but that isn't really a cliché. One doesn't accuse Charles Dickens of doing the "Christmas Carol" cliché because he wrote the story. The Endless are all related and it's sort of expected they would all be kind of similar-looking considering the jobs of those who do resemble each other, type-wise. If Gaiman has reused a certain type in Mirror Mask (which I haven't seen), it still isn't a cliché. I think other people going to that source and relying on it to inform the feel they want to give their work *could* be clichéd (and I've seen examples of this here and there in comics and YA fiction, especially), but that's not a fair assessment of Gaiman's use of his own work. Even in American Gods where he has a lot of the same characters (gods) show up that were in Sandman, he approaches things in a very different way.
@jennaw: I can see what you are saying, and I agree somewhat. I do like American Gods because it came out and was different from the stuff he usually put out, but since then he has gone back to the whimsical, awkward boys and mysterious girls stuff, Stardust alone had enough Gaiman tropes to choke a unicorn with whimsy.
I suppose that would be a better term, tropes, as opposed to cliché...
@ElijahDProphet: This may just be a fundamental misunderstanding of what Gaiman does -- he takes the mythgos, fucks with it, and sends it back out there in new, surprising ways. Stardust predates American Gods by some time and was a comic originally, then a novel, and now a film. Looking at his work in chronological order shows an arc of change and expansion to his style. Sure, things pop back up, but with Mirror Mask, it may have as much to do with the amount of time it took to get made than with anything else.
I don't know. I still can't agree. One ought not to call out someone for having a style. The Ellis comments are pretty valid; over the past few years, he has really leaned on his style to the point where his work has become predictably shocking, predictably obscene, etc., but I don't think Gaiman's done that. Anansi Boys was so different, I've had a hard time getting into it at all.
@jennaw: I don't know about that "new, surprising ways" bit. After Sandman and Neverwhere, I feel like Neil Gaiman just got really, really boring.
What if the X-Men lived in the 17th century? Oh god--Captain America would be like a native american! What if the Gods were like people? Whoah--some of them would be selfish jerks!
Also, I agree that Warren Ellis is becoming more cranky than anything else; however, I was really excited about New Universal. That was fun, while it lasted.
Hey, Graeme
You certainly don't come across as a 'shy' Scottish lad with the opinions in this column. Being one of the creators/writers of Shark-Man I know I am biased, but the reason you give for dismissing Shark-Man could easily be the same reason for wanting to read it. Didn't it occur to you that both Image and the creators might be very aware of people's reaction to a name like ours, yet like most reviewers have found, there is a lot more to the book than just its title.
If you don't like the writing I can guarantee that it has the best looking artwork (by Steve Pugh) you will see this month, so still worth picking up.
Give it a try - post an address and I'll gladly mail you a copy.
Dave
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